garage floor coatings?

[va_tlc]

whats everyone using to put down on there floors? and how do you like it, and does it last? im thinking of doing mine, but wanted some inside scoop as to what is best , thanks.. and of course pics will help .

[48 ish]

I just bought a 20x40 shop from Garage Town with a treated deck. I don't know what they used, but I will never have another shop without it. It makes clean up a breeze and it's tough as nails. It cost me an extra $400, but it was well worth it to me. It did scratch up a little when I put the C-20 up on jack stands, but since then I put a 1x2 board under the legs of the jack stands and all is well. Hope this helps.....

[stllookn]

Tranny oil, grease, engine oil, beer, dirt, parts, blood sweat and tears.

Did you mean what WOULD I like to have on it? I used cheap Rustoleum cement paint in the lab without primer and it seems to working fine. I don't have much faith in its longevity without first acid etching, priming and pressure washing. Looks great for now though and light grey really lightens up the place!

[mvfd70]

Whatever the po of the property had the concrete sealed with. I'm just THRILLED to have concrete.

[hotrod 80]

I bought the Home Depot Kit , rustoleum i believe , X2 and did mine before we moved in . Some spots didn't take and peeled almost over night , others areas came up later . It will stick to your slicks if the truck sits to long . Brake fluid is the worst on it . Still looks better than it did . I wash it out real good about twice a year .

[70c10]

I used Rustoleum Epoxy Shield and love it!

[va_tlc]

wow 70c/10 that looks really nice , i know what yall are talking about, i just finally got concret a couple years ago, makes a big diffrence thats for sure,well thanks for the options.

[jay_shy]

Try doing a search on this site. Lots of info there.

http://www.garagejournal.com/

Someone else on this board recommended this site so I am passing it on.

Jason

[72BlckButy]

I love garagejournal.com, that site is loaded with information.

Love the floor 70c10!

[CG]

I finally got the floor poured for my new garage on Friday. Some how a darn cat managed to get in there and left a few paw prints. I hate cats.

I want to put some sort of coating down when its all cured. I think its going to take a little longer since I had vapor barrier put down. I belong to the garage journal site and there are so many varying opinions on which way to go it will make your head spin.

Post pics when you get it all done and figured out.

[jlaird]

I was going to suggest garagejournal too!

awesome site.

[tdave00]

Originally Posted by CG

I finally got the floor poured for my new garage on Friday. Some how a darn cat managed to get in there and left a few paw prints. I hate cats.

I want to put some sort of coating down when its all cured. I think its going to take a little longer since I had vapor barrier put down. I belong to the garage journal site and there are so many varying opinions on which way to go it will make your head spin.

Post pics when you get it all done and figured out.

I pour concrete for a living and I have always been told to put the sealer on pretty soon after it's been poured. We recommend that to all of our customers if they are going to put it on themselves. Sealer locks the moisture in and slows down the curing process, which is good. If concrete cures too quick it can cause stress cracks. Plus, the quicker you get it on the less chance that it can get stained or chipped. If there is going to be minimimal traffic on it we usually suggest Eagle brand concrete sealer. You can pick it up at Lowe's. Two coats is optimal. If you are going to have a lot of traffic you might want to go to a concrete supply store and pick up a commercial sealer. It will hold up a lot longer.


You will find some good information at the link below.
http://www.concretenetwork.com/concrete/garage_floor/


Epoxies look great, but I can't believe people would cover up concrete when you could do something like the picture below. In my opinion acid staining is the most gorgeous thing that can be done to concrete, and it will hold up great with the right type of sealer. It's really not a hard process to get something like the picture below either. Most any DIY'er can do it with no special equipment.

[special-K]

Don`t mean to contradict,but you better follow the instructions for whatever you use.From the ones I`ve seen it`s vital to allow proper curing time on new concrete.I have a friend who built a bike/machine shop last summer andused some coating product that lifted in random areas and is having problems getting the company to cover the warranty.They are claiming it went on too soon.He`s claiming he waited longer than recommended.It`s a mess either way and an expensive one.

[see ten]

I used an epoxy coating on my floor. I put it down about 30 days after the concrete was poured. I've had it about 3.5 years now and it's holding up great. I've even cleaned up paint overspay off of it with mineral spirits without damaging the finish.

I don't have any specific shots of the floor but here's a couple pics that you can see it in.

[streetstar]

I have a similar product to See-Ten's. A 2 part epoxy from a kit. It works great on 2/3 of my floor, but 1/3 of it is peeling up. The thirds are separated by saw cuts and i think it is due to not prepping/etching that area thoroughly.

Anyway - i'm p---ed about it and will be putting race deck or a similar product on that section in a checkerboard fashion and calling it my "motorcycle shop area".

VCT tile in a checkerboard pattern looks awesome and is relatively inexpensive too

again , cruise garagejournal.com for more info and pics of any of these

[72BlckButy]

Thanks a lot tdave00.... the wife was walking by just as I scrolled down to that picture, guess what my next home project is...

tdave00 do you have any more information on the process?

[cheviss427]

Originally Posted by 72BlckButy

Thanks a lot tdave00.... the wife was walking by just as I scrolled down to that picture, guess what my next home project is...

tdave00 do you have any more information on the process?

pool table?

[tdave00]

Originally Posted by 72BlckButy

Thanks a lot tdave00.... the wife was walking by just as I scrolled down to that picture, guess what my next home project is...

tdave00 do you have any more information on the process?

You can get alot of information at http://concretenetwork.com, but I can give you a quick rundown as well.


First and foremost you want to make sure your floor is clean, so you need to use a degreaser. The acid reacts with the concrete, so if there are any areas that are covered with grease or dirt the acid won't stain those areas. Make sure it's clean! You "might" even want to rent a buffer with a scouring pad and spray down your degreaser and scour it with the buffer. Depends on how dirty your floor is. If it's not too bad a little "elbow grease" will do the trick. Once it's clean you want to rinse it thoroughly. Make sure it's dry. You might want to let it dry over night.

Find a concrete supply store that sells acid stain. Pick your color (earthtones have the best results). Spray it on with a pump up sprayer. From here you have different options to get different looks. You can work it in with a straw broom to create some texture. You can rub it in with some sponges, which gives it a more solid color. There will be slight varations in color either way, but that's the beauty of it. I like the look that comes from rubbing it in with a sponge. Follow the directions for the particular stain that you use to determine how long to leave it on. Rinse with ammonia and water, and rinse a few more times with just water.

**** You need to tape off at your garage door where you want the color to stop. We usually just use blue masking tape. Before you rinse it you need to lay down some plastic from the tape line and out over the driveway. Tape the plasic down to the masking tape with ducttape. If the plastic doesn't cover the whole driveway you will want to get a few 2x4's and roll the end of the plastic over them. Angle the 2x4's and the end of the plastic so the water will run off whichever side of the driveway that you want. THIS WILL KEEP THE ACID STAIN FROM STAINING YOUR DRIVEWAY! It will probably already be diluted enough that it won't hurt it, but you don't want to take any chances.

After it's rinsed you might need to hit a few spots that didn't take the stain well. If you've cleaned it good this probably won't be the case, but just a heads up for you.

Once the floor is to your liking get a friend to come over and help you mark your lines. You'll need a pencil, tape measure and chalk line (maybe a small square too). Once all your lines are chalked you will need a small hand held grinder with a masonry blade on it. Take a straight 2x4 and lay it up against the line. This will keep your lines straight. Don't try to freehand it. You need a straightline! Run the grinder right up against the 2x4 and just score the line. You are not trying to cut 1/4" deep joints. You just want to cut through the acid stain to reveal the grey concrete line below. This will give the appearance of grout joints.

Take your time where your lines meet. If you can wear out one of the blades so that it's real small you can use it where your lines meet and it will be alot easier. (Grab a brick or block and just grind on it until you've got a small wheel left.)

Rinse it again and seal it with the manufacturers recommended sealer. Voila. You've got a floor that epoxy floors drool over .

Feel free to contact me with any questions.

[tdave00]

Originally Posted by special-K

Don`t mean to contradict,but you better follow the instructions for whatever you use.From the ones I`ve seen it`s vital to allow proper curing time on new concrete.I have a friend who built a bike/machine shop last summer andused some coating product that lifted in random areas and is having problems getting the company to cover the warranty.They are claiming it went on too soon.He`s claiming he waited longer than recommended.It`s a mess either way and an expensive one.

Definitely follow the directions. I know nothing about epoxy, so I wasn't referring to that. I have heard it's very sensitive to moisture in the concrete, so be careful.

As far as sealing with a residential concrete sealer you can do that the day after with no problems. If you are using a commerical sealer you need to follow the manufacturers directions for curing time. Good luck.